Juvenile's Baby Daughter & Baby's Mother Killed By Relative...

Juvenile

Rapper Juvenile's Daughter Killed In Georgia...

In this photo taken Feb. 29, 2008, by the Gwinnett County Detention Center, Anthony Tyrone Terrell Jr. is shown. Terrell, 17, was arrested Friday, Feb. 29, 2008 and charged with killing his mother, who was a sheriff's deputy, and his two small sisters, authorities said.
(AP Photo/ Gwinnett County Detention Center)

By ERRIN HAINES, Associated Press

A 17-year-old boy has been charged with murder in the fatal shootings of his mother and her two little girls, one of whom was rap star Juvenile's 4-year-old daughter.

Anthony Tyrone Terrell Jr. was charged Friday in the deaths at the family home near Lawrenceville, where the bodies were found the night before, said police spokeswoman Illana Spellman.

She identified the victims as Gwinnett County Sheriff's Deputy Joy Deleston, 39, and her two daughters, Micaiah, 11, and Jelani, 4. The motive was still unclear.

Deleston brought a paternity lawsuit in 2004, claiming that the 32-year-old rap star Juvenile, whose real name is Terius Gray, was Jelani's father, Gwinnett County court records show.

Attorney Randy Kessler, who represented Juvenile in the proceedings, said the case was resolved peacefully by consent order in 2006. Both parties agreed Juvenile was the father.

Kessler said Saturday he had not talked with the rapper about the killings. "Anytime you have a situation like that, it's shocking," Kessler said.

Terrell was taken to jail in neighboring DeKalb County to avoid any potential conflict because Deleston worked for Gwinnett County, Spellman said. He is being held without bail.

Because of his age, prosecutors cannot seek the death penalty against Terrell. A preliminary hearing will be set next week in Gwinnett County Superior Court, said prosecutor Danny Porter.

Defense attorney Lyle Porter did not return a call Friday. An attempt to reach Juvenile at a listing for "T. Gray" in the New Orleans area, where he is based, was unsuccessful on Friday night.

Authorities on Friday found the gun used, going by information provided by Terrell. Spellman said she could not confirm whether Deleston's service weapon was used.

Deleston, a seven-year member of the department, had been assigned to the sex offender unit, police said.

Police had gone to the subdivision because a caller reported shots fired, Officer David Schiralli said earlier. They found a bullet hole in a house, then checked next door because they knew a deputy lived there.

They opened the door to announce themselves and discovered the bodies, Schiralli said. The 17-year-old son arrived at the house about 35 minutes later, he said.

Spellman said the boy was arrested after talking to investigators but didn't elaborate.

Neighbors said the family had moved in less than a year ago. They often saw Deleston in her squad car coming home from work and said having a deputy around was reassuring.

Jeff Beaird, who lives across the street, said he often saw Terrell in the driveway shooting hoops with his friends or washing his mother's patrol car but doesn't remember anything out of the ordinary.

"It's so shocking because you don't expect something like this to happen," Beaird said.

Juvenile has been arrested several times on charges ranging from failure to pay child support to resisting an officer in a scuffle at a Florida mall in 1999. Most of the charges have been dismissed.

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Associated Press writer Leonard Pallats contributed to this report.